In 2011, the Society of Festeros, at that time chaired by Rafael Ferrero Terol, filed an application with the Conselleria de Cultura for two of the most emblematic events of the Moors and Christians Festival of Ontinyent, the Baixà del Santísimo Cristo of the Agony and the Embassies, were declared of Cultural Interest (BIC).
The request remained paralyzed in the offices of the conselleria for a few years, which coincided with the presidency of Toni Morales and the brief stage of Michel Aliaga. In 2015, the board chaired by José Rafael Sanchis Vicedo went to the conselleria to ask in what state was this request, to which from Valencia it was answered that all the festivals of Moors and Christians enjoyed protection according to Order 50 / 2015, of May 13, of the Ministry of Education, Culture and Sports, by which the Moors and Christians of the Valencian Community are declared as Intangible Good of Local Relevance.
Faced with this response, Festeros reminded the council that the request to declare BIC these two acts was long before the approval of the order declaring immaterial property of local relevance the Festivities of Moors and Christians.
Finally, the commission has created a commission that is in charge of analyzing the particular requests that some populations had made in recent years, including Ontinyent. In January, the committee reviewed the reports that Ontinyent sent back and also established criteria for granting the BIC declaration. At the time that the Society of Festeros was aware of these new criteria, I request the collaboration of Alfred Bernabeu, chronicler of the city and that as vice president in 2011 was responsible for writing the report of 2011, to update the new criteria the documentation that was presented at the time. This update is in its final phase and soon it is expected that it can be sent again to the Conselleria de Cultura, whose technicians have transferred to the Sociedad de Festeros their commitment to convene the commission immediately upon receipt of the updated documentation, so that the process does not get stuck again like it did the first time.
The objective of the Society of Festeros, both in the first request of 2011 and today, is to achieve the maximum protection possible for two very unique events of the Festival of Moors and Christians of Ontinyent, who understand that they deserve special recognition.
Among the new requirements demanded by the General Directorate of Culture and Heritage is that the petition be endorsed by other local institutions, civic and cultural associations. Therefore, from the Sociedad de Festeros they have sent letters to different local entities in which they request adhesion to this petition. In this same letter, from Festeros reiterate the importance of protecting for future generations the structure of the Baixà and the Embassies, celebrations that have remained unchanged since the birth of the Fiestas. In fact, the Baixà del Cristo is a continuation of the tradition of the soldiery of the foral period, when the soldiers accompanied the Purísima in procession with salves.